A YouTube clip of rare Monet footage reminded me of these verses, from the last day of the Monet show last summer at the Nelson Gallery in Kansas City.

Stock markets crashing
A brave helicopter, too
Death and destruction

Monet’s exhibit
Beckons, one last day of peace
Amid the chaos

Cleveland, St. Louis,
KC rejoin their triptych
Of water lilies

Yes, Monet beckons
Grainy black and white film clip
Of a smoking bear

Museum writings
Talk of history and technique.
Soul, they can’t explain

Pure tranquility
Spotlights on the canvases
In dimly lit room

Pure tranquility
Flows across the canvases
42 feet wide

Pure tranquility
Reunites the canvases
Three friends breathe as one

I sit, stand, kneel, rest
Immersing myself in them
From every angle

Can’t see from afar
Without people in the way
They’re part of the show

Round-faced baby girl
Stooped man in tourist-plaid shorts
Three handsome siblings

The Nelson’s garden
Blooms with these human flowers
Shapes, colors, ages

Monet’s panels each
Have a shimmering center
Of yellow and green

Each draws you, calls you
To get lost in reflection
As Monet once did

Clusters of lilies
Give each panel its own life
Different from the rest

Wisps of peach and rose
Deep red here, darker green there
Cream saucers and swirls

Beloved garden
Monet’s refuge from a war
That ravaged his time

Beloved garden
That became his obsession
To paint and rework

Beloved garden
A peace we magically share
Across time and space